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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25213126">The Same Direction</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account'>orphan_account</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Criminal Minds (US TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Light Smut</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-07-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 11:34:07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,992</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25213126</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>After a difficult case, the team goes to Rossi’s beach house. Spencer has trouble dealing with his feelings toward Y/N.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Spencer Reid/Reader</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>133</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>The Same Direction</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“Orders from Strauss, everyone needs to go.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The team had just gotten back from a big case, spanning a total of five weeks on the job. It was a particularly rough one; the killer had gotten away, and the family of the victim was pressing charges. They were all in desperate need of a vacation. And it just so happened that luck was on their side. Rossi had a beach house that he’d been keeping well hidden. Strauss had gotten wind of it - presumably through a little hacker birdie - and told the team to take a week-long break to calm their nerves.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The team was ecstatic to finally get some time off. Besides, everyone loved the beach.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is it mandatory?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Everyone except, apparently, for Spencer Reid.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes,” Hotch said shortly, picking up his go-bag and dismissing everyone to go home and pack.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spencer, however, was not giving up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Couldn’t I just stay home and relax?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Y/N, the newest member of the team, shoved him softly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What’s the matter, Spence? Scared to see what Rossi looks like in his thong?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s called a </span>
  <em>
    <span>Speedo</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Y/N,” Rossi said, already headed out the door of the briefing room, leaving his coworkers gaping behind him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Great. Spencer had no choice but to pack up his belongings and join his friends on the trip to the beach. He never thought being packed in a car with his closest friends would be quite like this. Once they’d gotten to forty-two bottles of beer on the wall, he’d fallen asleep.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The beach house was quite nice, which, in retrospect, should have been expected. Rossi was not all that shy about his wealth, nor shy about spending it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spencer was just glad there were enough bedrooms for everyone. He said he’d come to the beach but he didn’t say he’d actually go to the ocean. His plans for the following week consisted of a locked door, a plethora of books, and </span>
  <em>
    <span>no ocean</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Plans, however, that never came to fruition.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, Spence,” Y/N was stood in his doorway, a wrap around her hips and a shawl on her shoulders, “We’re all gonna check out the water. It’s low-tide. You comin’?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spencer gave her a withering look.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I-uh-I can’t. I’m, um, I’m allergic to sunscreen.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was a lame lie and he knew it. He also knew better than to try and lie to a profiler, not to mention a gorgeous woman who he may or may not have a tiny, minuscule crush on.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Really?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>An evil glint shone in her eye and she tranced forward, hoisting him up out of bed and pulling him out of his room. He protested the whole way down to the beach, trying to come up with excuses.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Our stuff could get stolen, someone could get stung by a jellyfish, I’m not in my bathing suit.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spence, you’re not allergic to sunscreen, you can borrow some of mine, Rossi brought a safe for our stuff, and I know for a fact that those are swim shorts you’re wearing.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, but I don’t have my SPF swim shirt! If I get burned it’s your fault!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She just giggled, clutching his arm as she led him down to the beach, spotting their coworkers lounging under a rainbow umbrella in the distance.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Pretty Boy? What are you doing here? Shields finally drag you outta your room?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yep!” she said proudly. “Although I’m not sure I’ll be able to drag him into the water. He keeps muttering about jellyfish statistics. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Don’t</span>
  </em>
  <span> start!” she added as he opened his mouth.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spencer blushed, taking a seat in the one empty lounge chair, startled when Y/N sat down right next to him. He tried his best not to think about her warm hip touching his.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Prentiss bounced up, closing the book she was reading. “Well, maybe he’ll follow our lead, huh? Come on, guys!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And she ran towards the water, Morgan, J.J, Garcia, and Rossi jumping up to follow. Hotch was taking a walk along the beach so Spencer and Y/N were suddenly alone.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are you not going to go in?” Spencer asked as she fumbled with her beach bag.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I am, I just need to put on sunscreen.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She stood, stripping off her shawl and skirt wrap. Spencer tried not to watch as she squirted the lotion into her hands, rubbing them together and massaging her legs, arms, and neck. He turned his head toward the beach, attempting to watch a flock of seagulls. His eyes unconsciously drifted back to her toned body, so exposed. She didn’t even seem bothered by how on display she was, people walking by able to see quite a lot.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spence? A little help?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Reid snapped to attention, eyes refocusing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What? Oh.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She had turned her back to him, holding out the sunscreen bottle. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You want me to…. Put-put the….”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sunscreen on my back? Yes. Please use a lot, I burn easy.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>No, no, no, no. NO!</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Fuck.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spencer took the bottle and squirted a generous amount into his hand. Y/N smiled at him, pleased he was helping her, and laid down on a beach chair, untying the back of her bikini, the strings dangling down toward the sand leaving her back fully exposed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spencer swallowed hard.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Okay. This was fine. Just think about crime scenes. Dead bodies. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Naked Morgan</span>
  </em>
  <span>! There we go. Boner gone.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But the moment he touched her skin, all hope was lost. She felt like silk under his hands, the softness of the lotion only making him glide against her smoother. He could have handled that just fine if not for the fact that as he rubbed the lotion into her skin, she let out soft moans, gasping as he brushed over certain spots.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mm, that feels nice, Spencer. A little higher…. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Yes</span>
  </em>
  <span>, right there,” she keened softly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spencer had to suppress a moan himself. The sight of her underneath him, back displayed, writing and moaning was enough to get him hard.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The sunscreen was now well-applied to her back, but Spencer couldn’t stop yet. There was a growing issue in his swim shorts and he wasn’t sure how to handle it. So he just kept rubbing her back, going from stingily applying the sunscreen to a full-blown massage.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That…. did not help the situation. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Y/N just kept moaning his name, telling him how good he was at this. The situation was escalating and Spencer needed to stop.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He moved his hands away quickly, turning away from her and shutting his eyes, praying that his … </span>
  <em>
    <span>length</span>
  </em>
  <span> … wouldn’t be that visible.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You okay?” she touched his shoulder and he spun around, hoping and wishing she wouldn’t look down.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She didn’t. She was busy retying her bikini.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, I’m fine,” he said, far from fine.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She took the bottle back from him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Want me to do your legs?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“NO! No. Um, no thank you. I think I’ll just stay here. This isn’t a swim shirt and I don’t wanna get it wet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She smiled devilishly, leaning forward and grasping the edges of his shirt.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Then don’t.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And ever so slowly, maintaining eye contact the entire time, she lifted his shirt up over his head and threw it down on the beach chair. Even stranger, Spencer found himself letting her. He let her squeeze sunblock into her hand and run it over his shoulders, massaging it in as he had done to her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There! Now you can come in the water!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Y/N, the dangers of-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hush! Follow me!” and she grabbed his hand, leading him toward the ocean, calling out to their friends.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Look who’s here!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Reid!</span>
  </em>
  <span>” the group cheered collectively, laughing as Spencer slowly entered the water, wrapping his arms around his torso self consciously.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He always wore a swim shirt. Even in hot tubs. It hadn’t even occurred to him how uncovered he was until he was smack dab in front of his colleagues.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, what’s the deal, Pretty Ricky? I’ve never seen you swim without a shirt before. Come to think of it, I’ve never really seen you swim.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“About one in every sixteen people gets injured somehow at the beach. One in three of those happen in the water.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“La-la-la-la-la,” Garcia said, plugging her ears. “I do not want to hear about how dangerous the ocean is. Living in blissful ignorance is my forte.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Y/N laughed and Spencer joined in, a little of the tension slipping off his shoulders. Once the banter began, it was easier to forget about the unknown terrors lurking beneath the water’s surface.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Until….</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, let’s go deeper!” Prentiss said, slowly wading further until she was so far out they could barely hear her. “Come on guys! I think there’s a sandbank just up ahead!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m out,” Garcia said, turning around and walking back to the shore. “I’m going to nake a nap. If anyone needs me, don’t bother trying to wake me up.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Morgan, Rossi, and JJ all enthusiastically waded deeper towards Prentiss, frolicking in the waves and calling for Spencer and Y/N to join them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Y/N softly took Spencer’s hand.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Come on, I don’t know if I’ll be able to touch the bottom and I might need to hold onto you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And before he could protest and pull out a worrying statistic, she had led him just deep enough so that his head was above the water. In front of them, their friends were clearly standing on a sandbank, happily jumping in the waves.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spence,” Y/N mumbled, struggling to keep her head above the water. “I can’t touch.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, um.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You don’t mind, do you?” she asked, climbing onto his front and wrapping her legs around him, securing them behind him. His hands unconsciously flew to her hips to hold her, the movement shocking him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>This…. was not good. She was pressed right up against a very sensitive area that he’d already had to calm down from earlier. The sudden contact was making the blood rush downward, no doubt leading to a very unpleasant conversation.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks,” she whispered, sliding her hands around his neck and glancing down at his lips. Wait, what?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>If Spencer hadn’t been so distracted, he would have been able to read her expression better. Instead, he was left a muttering mess, trying to keep his thoughts as pure as possible so that there wasn’t a sudden growth in his trunks.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No problem,” he said, voice cracking and he kept walking toward the bank, Y/N in his arms. Each step made her rub up against him in a less than pure way.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You okay?” she asked, readjusting her legs and pulling tighter to him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mm-hmm,” he grunted, not trusting his voice not to give out.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>By some miracle, they reached their friends, Spencer set her down and was finally able to control his breathing enough to stop the hardness growing in his pants.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The obligatory beach games were played with much splashing, diving, and seawater getting in people’s eyes. After the third round of a game of chicken, Rossi decided it was time to head back. The tide was getting higher and it was about dinnertime.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Can you give me another lift?” Y/N turned to Spencer, taking his hand for the millionth time that day. She always was a little more touchy with him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Um, sure. Hop on,” he pat his back, hoping it was nonchalant enough not to arouse suspicion.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>That’s not the only thing that’s aroused</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hush!</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And she smiled, jumping up on his back and riding him back to where she could touch the bottom.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks, Spence. You’re fun to ride!” and she trounced off toward the beach house, leaving Spencer befuddled and confused.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>~</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Rossi cooked up a pot of his famous pasta for dinner, sending everyone into a glorious food coma from overeating.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spencer retreated to his room and dug his nose into </span>
  <em>
    <span>Les Miserables</span>
  </em>
  <span>, quickly getting sucked into the story.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A knock on his door startled him several hours later.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Come in,” he muttered, pulling the covers up over his bare legs.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was Hotch.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, everyone’s turning in for the night, just wanted to let you know. In the morning, we’re going to head to that frozen ice place.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay,” he smiled at Hotch as he closed the door. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Glancing at the clock, he was surprised to see it was already 10:30.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Usually, Spencer accidentally stayed up until three AM, falling asleep with a case file clutched in his arms only to wake up in three hours. Tonight, however, there was no case to stress about, no time to wake up tomorrow, and no having to worry about stupid feelings for a coworker. If he wanted to, he could go for a walk on the beach and no one would bother him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Which is exactly what he chose to do.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The sand had gone from scorching his feet during the day to chilly and more stable at nighttime. He walked for about five minutes until he saw a soft light in the distance. Someone had lit a small fire a few meters from the shoreline.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was about to turn around when he noticed a very familiar shawl wrapped around the figure’s shoulders.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Y/N?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Her head snapped towards him and although he couldn’t see her expression, he could hear the smile in her voice.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, Spence!” he walked up and sat next to her, facing the ocean. “What are you doing out here?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I was just taking a walk. What about you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He made the mistake of looking at her, nearly gasping at the way the soft glow of the firelight illuminated her features. He couldn’t help watching her lips as she spoke.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, same as you. I just kinda needed some alone time.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, do you want me to-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No!” she reached out, grabbing his arm to stop him from standing. “No, It’s… It’s ok. I like having you near, Spencer.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His breath froze in his throat.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I-</span>
  <em>
    <span>ahem</span>
  </em>
  <span>-I like to be near you, Y/N. I mean, you’re fun to be around.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She laughed, hugging his arm and resting her head on his shoulder. Spencer tensed at the contact, wondering if she knew what she was doing and, more importantly, what it was doing to him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They stared off into the waves, watching the birds dance on the horizon, the moon low in the sky. It was beautiful.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You ever wonder why we do what we do?” she asked, voice barely a whisper.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was shocked yet again by her forwardness. He never knew what she was going to say.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Like, we know how to do the job, but how do we turn it off? Everyone we come in contact with, we have the tools to read their lives story right off their face. But what the hell do we know about each other? I don’t know. Sometimes I just feel like no one knows me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She glanced at him, cheeks turning pink. “Sorry, forget it,” she whispered, pulling back from him and throwing sand on the fire. “Goodnight, Spencer.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You like the beach,” he blurted, making Y/N stop standing up. “You-you like the beach and-and chocolate ice cream. You hate it when Hotch’s belt doesn’t match his shoes but you never say anything because you don’t want to bother him. You tell people your favorite color is blue but it’s actually yellow. When a case involves a child, you always wear your hair down so that if you’re the one to find them, they’ll be able to smell your shampoo. You don’t let anyone initiate contact with you and you never let anyone hug you. Except-except for me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The words left his mouth before he could stop them. His gaze had drifted back to the ocean, spotting a dolphin jump in the distance.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s what I know about you, Y/N.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He dreaded meeting her eyes but the silence was more unbearable.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The moment their gaze met, a wave crashed upon the shore in front of them and Y/N leaned forward, gently pressing her lips to his. Spencer gasped, lightly pressing back, keeping his hands firmly at his sides.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Emotions flew between them, Y/N reaching up and softly touching Spencer’s cheek, a burst of care rising in his chest, tightening in his throat. His hand found the back of her head and he pulled her closer. Silently, she climbed into his lap and deepened the kiss, moaning softly against his mouth.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spencer gasped, hands moving to her hips, grasping them roughly. Her lips parted and she ran her tongue along his lips, parting them softly and delving deeper the moment he gave her access. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The fire next to them was out but a new one had lit between them, sending waves of warmth amidst their bodies. Spencer was emboldened by the kiss, gently biting her lip and coaxing her mouth more open. Their hands moved everywhere, pulling each other’s hair, caressing each other’s backs, and holding each other’s cheeks ever so gently.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Y/N was the first to pull back, resting her forehead against his, breathing heavily against his mouth.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As much as I love this, I’m not all that excited about sand getting in certain places.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He laughed lightly, stroking her hair.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m-I’m not quite ready to….”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We don’t have to.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She pulled back, giving him a heartwarming smile and stood up, holding out her hand to Spencer.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Come on,” she smiled and he took her hand, standing. “Let’s take a walk.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And so they walked off along the beach, hand clasped together, conversing quietly about nothing in particular.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>No matter how much Spencer already knew about her, he found himself wanting to get to know her all over again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And Y/N had absolutely no problem with that.</span>
</p><p>~</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Love does not consist in gazing at each other, but in looking outward together in the same direction.</span>
  </em>
  <span>” -Antoine de Saint-Exupery</span>
</p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
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